If not my DD's high school has an optional $55.00 fee. And it is very much optional. Not the compulsory-optional that some schools like to have.

All up including subject fees, excursion, sports fees (includes travel to and from carnivals and entrance into venues) and the optional $55.00 fee, we have paid $185.00 for the year.

Great value IMO.

ETA: This also includes her photocopying/printing account - instead of DD paying each time she wants to photocopy something in the library or print out something from internet or her assignment when our printer was broken, she has a little card that is loaded up each year and can be topped up along the way.

NSW public primary schoolVoluntary school fees $25 for the first child, $15 for the second, additional siblings are free.

Book packs are $20 each except for yr1 which is $26. Occasional math work for around $15 on top of that for some years.

Excursions are on top of this, including yearly excursion, camp every 2 yrs for yr 3-6, sports in school is $40 something each during term 3. Occasional extras like some of the enrichment classes have a cost small cost involved, band is $20 per term (10 for instrument hire, 10 for lessons)

Good God that is so cheap! Our public primary in VIC is $250 per child for fees, then we spend heaps each term on excursions, incursions and camps! This term they have a $185 camp, so far one incursion $9 (probably will be more) then uniforms and things on top of that.

I just received an invoice for $461 for 1 term for 4 kids at our local public primary school. This doesnt include school band fees of $170 per semester per child for 2 kids. On top of that is the voluntary contribution of $300 for the year. We have already had to spend a few hundred on the book and stationary lists and still need to provide tissues, paper towels and hand soap dispensers.

Primary school fees - $40Books - we haven't received a price list yet, but based on last years Year 2, it will be around $40 I think (including the dictionary that they use from year 2-6), so should e cheaper again next year.

Other things we paid for last year were Dance (only because DS got into the dance group) and I think it was about $50 for the year. Choir was free. But we had to buy a performing arts t-shirt which was about $25.

Another Victorian oggling at the low fees in this thread: my primary school child had fees of $565 in his public primary school this year. That's not counting the extra $300 they will charge for swimming and camp later in the year, both of which are described as "mandatory" fees...

And they're constantly sending home requests for further money, including for activities they seem to decide at the last minute are "central" to their "integrated curriculum" - last year these unexpected, last-minute fees amounted to nearly $200 above and beyond the other fees. These incidental requests are also generally described as central to in-class activities, and it's made clear kids will be excluded from things their peers and teachers are doing, if we don't pay...

I keep thinking this can't be normal, but I don't have any basis for comparison - he's just attending the school that was around the corner when he came of age. It's not as though I sought out some sort of particularly fancy public school...

Wow the fees do vary a fair bit from school to school. My 3 kids go to a catholic school the fees are $3000 for high school year 7 and $ 1800 per primary . So this year it's costing me $6600 for just the fees alone. If I included books, uniform and excursions it will be at least another $1000. My kids only started going to a catholic school because where I use to live had no good public schools ( I am not religious at all). I have moved now so I'm thinking maybe I should give public school a go. So that's why I was wondering of the cost. Cause if it was similar fee wise , I would just leave them where they are. Thanks for all of you replies

I have a daughter in yr 8 in qld and her school fees(more like materials and subject fee) is $180 and then the school gets a payment from the government of $112. Our son who is in yr 2 in a public primary school is $0.

For both of the above we have to pay for excursions, books, uniforms and every other charge for extra activities.

NSW here. Our primary school was $190 1st child and $180 2nd child. That includes text books etc and healthy harold visit, mathletics, gymnastics for one term and dancing for one term. All compulsory, oh, and there is the "voluntary contribution" too which is $45 1st child $35 2nd child.

High school, I'm not sure yet. Its not cheap though. And DD will have her electives costs included this year which will use up resources a lot. Especially art and food tech. Oh, but they got told on friday if they don't pay their school fees then they can't get their mathletics membership done and they won't organise their art excursion and they won't go. Only problem is no one has even received anything about the school fees yet!

for primary I also pay $70 a term for dance and tap lessons and $12.50 a week for Base clarinet lessons and any extra travel costs for when they perform at Bandfest, Dance festivals, local community performances - dance / tap and band are all optional.